Statement
Distinguished Co-facilitators,
I have the honour to deliver this statement on behalf of the Alliance of Small Island States.
At the outset, AOSIS aligns itself with the statement delivered by the Group of 77 and China, and wishes to share the following additional comments.
AOSIS wishes to express its appreciation to the co-facilitators and their respective teams for their leadership and efforts in delivering a concise and action-oriented zero draft. We consider that the zero draft provides a strong and balanced starting point for our negotiations on the draft conclusions and recommendations.
We also appreciate the incorporation of several inputs put forward by our group into the zero draft.
The recognition of the challenges faced by countries in special situations; the inclusion of language on correspondent banking relationships and their impacts, especially on SIDS; as well as the emphasis on trade support and capacity-building for SIDS, including in the critical area of data and statistics; all reflect important priorities for our membership and strengthen the overall balance of the text.
AOSIS particularly welcomes the inclusion of the section on “other action areas,” which rightly underscores that achieving the vision enshrined in the Sevilla Commitment requires the timely and effective implementation of all its action areas. This recognition is critical to ensuring that no element of the Commitment is treated in isolation or left behind.
We also welcome the inclusion of the sub-section on “Next Steps.” In our view, this provides an important pathway for the international community to deliberately and systematically advance implementation, including through actions that will support future reviews of priority areas.
In this regard, AOSIS proposes the inclusion of a paragraph under the sub-heading “Next Steps” requesting an update on the holding of the dialogue on debt sustainability, as contained in paragraph 50 (f) of the Sevilla Commitment.
AOSIS believes that an update on the holding of this dialogue would serve as a concrete and practical step forward. It would also provide an important input as we move toward reviewing the priority area on debt and debt sustainability under the Sevilla Commitment.
Distinguished Co-facilitators,
AOSIS remains committed to engaging constructively in these negotiations. We stand ready to work closely with all delegations, in a spirit of cooperation, to further discuss this proposal.
I thank you.
